Confederation Hockey Tournament

We spent the 27th to the 30th at the rink, as the KC Saints were in the Confederation Hockey Tournament!  Some may think, "Why would you want to spend some of your Christmas break at the rink?" to which we would reply, "Because we're crazy hockey parents and we LOVE it!!!"  lol!  Our girls may not love it but quite honestly, they don't really complain so maybe they love it too?! 

Anyways, back to the tournament!  Blake's team had an amazing tournament, bringing home the GOLD medal!  They played teams who they play in their league play and beat the top 2 teams in the standings!!  It was extremely exciting (and stressful at times) as two games came down to shootouts! We also enjoyed watching other teams play, including many of Blake's classmates and the tier 1 KC team.  After the gold medal game, the entire team headed to BP's for a celebration.  Sending a HUGE thank you to all our friends and family who cheered Blake and his team on.  We love you and appreciate your support! 

Congrats to the Saints!!! We are now looking forward to a good run during Minor Hockey Week :)  The first game is January 8th.  It's an interesting format - if you win the first game, you move on but lose one game and you're out.  If you lose the first game, you still have one more loss before you're knocked out.  And the top teams in the tier are in one bracket, while the lower teams in the tier are in the other bracket.  So basically they make it difficult for the top teams!!  And we're one of those top teams.  Which we are proud of but in this instance, it might be easier to be lower in the standings!  lol!  Either way, we can beat every single team in our tier ... so hopefully they're on their game and play their best hockey!!  Either way, I'll be cheering hard and a proud hockey mom :)

Christmas Celebrations

It's funny how we spend weeks preparing for Christmas and just like that, it's over!  The preparations are always more than worth it :)

On Christmas Eve we spent the day at home - cleaning house, decorating cookies for Santa and relaxing.  That evening we attended the family pj service at Church, followed by take out and Christmas lights!!  It was a wonderful evening, the pj service is always so great, the stories and prayers targeted towards children but also enjoyable for the adults.  We picked up dinner and took in St. Albert's version of Candycane Lane.  It's just 2 blocks but gorgeous!  From there we headed to the actual Candycane Lane!  It was BUSY but we snuck in a 'back' way and enjoyed the scenery :)  When we got home we said goodbye to our elf, Picks Rudolph, set out cookies, carrots and Christmas milk (aka egg nog) and it was off to bed for the kiddo's!!  They took awhile to fall asleep ... after numerous threats that Santa was not going to come if they didn't get to sleep, they fell asleep.

On Christmas morning Cal and Blake woke early to go to November Project.  Blake was so excited to attend his very first November Project and it was a great time to attend, as they met at the zoo and there was a special visit from Santa's reindeer!!  When the boys got home, the girls were cuddled in with me and we quickly headed downstairs to open stockings and gifts :)  We spent a few hours at home, enjoying our wife saver breakfast and the kids enjoying their new gifts!  We headed to my parents house for the remainder of the day, where we met my sister and her family and my Grandma Kelley.  We had a great day!  My parents recently had all their old home movies transferred to DVD and we watched hours of footage!!  It was so awesome, I loved it all - from Christmas celebrations at my Grandma Marg and Grandpa Art's to swimming lessons in St. Paul!!  I'm so glad we have those memories to treasure forever and hopefully we'll be able to take in the other home movies some day soon!!  It was a great day with my family and after the previous weeks scare, I'm sure we all had our moments where we thanked our lucky stars that we were all together, at Mom and Dad's house.

On Boxing Day we had Cal's brother and his family, his mom and his niece and nephew over for a Cameron Christmas!  We had another wonderful day :)  The kids played outside for awhile and all had a blast together.  Many manicures and pedicures were given with Em's new salon set, Lego was built, plush pillows created and a few games of NHL '15 were played!

It was a wonderful Christmas and we are so very blessed with time with our wonderful families.  Sending love to those we did not see on Christmas, we are always thinking of everyone during this special time of year.

xoxo
Tracy

2015 Christmas Letter

We hope our annual Christmas letter finds all our family and friends enjoying the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season!  We have been enjoying the mild winter Mother Nature has blessed us with!  We are nowhere near done our Christmas shopping but we do have a start on it and the baking is in full swing.  This Christmas we will be spending Christmas day in Stony Plain at my Mom and Dad’s with my sister and her family and Boxing Day at our house with Cal’s brother and family, his Mom and his niece and nephew.  We are looking forward to spending time with family and also to some time off with our own fab 3!  The days pass quicker and quicker and before we know these kids will be teenagers!!

Cal is off for most of the Christmas break.  He has to sneak in a work trip to Bonyville on the 22nd.  He’s keeping busy at work, working mainly on fibre to the home projects. He completed one of his long term goals this summer when he finished the full marathon at the Edmonton Marathon!  We were all so proud of him; I had tears in my eyes as he crossed the finish line.  Blake and Emerson ran the last few meters with him and it was an emotional moment.  He’s already thinking ahead to summer 2016 and his next goal is to beat his 1^st marathon time!  He and a group of his November Project friends have also signed up for the Sinister 7 race in July.  It sounds like quite the challenge!  We hope to tie our summer camping vacation into this race and head off to the States or BC from there. Cal is coaching hockey again and this year the time commitment is slightly more as he is the head coach of Blake’s Novice rep team.  He’s doing such a great job, the team has improved so much and I think it’s partly because of Cal’s practice planning and his dedication.  Cal is also an assistant Coach for Emerson’s ringette team.   He’s enjoying learning the game of ringette and sharing his skills with the team and Emerson loves having him on the ice with her.  Cal has also volunteered for the Bauer First Shift program this fall.  It is an ice time once a week, coaching players who have never played hockey before.  Bauer outfits them from head to toe and then they learn the game of the hockey!  Cal has volunteered for this program in the past and really enjoys being involved at the grass roots level … you know, before politics are involved!!

I had a big change this year as I headed back to work in September.  I am working as an Occupational Therapy Assistant for Alberta Health Services.  Although I am employed by AHS, I work on an Inclusive Learning team for the Edmonton Public School Board. It is a bit complicated keeping straight who is who and where all my paperwork should go but after a few months, I think I have it!  I work with children who have mild to moderate delays, in various schools around the city.  Mainly we work on fine motor skills, concentrating on printing and legibility. I absolutely love my job and am so grateful that the opportunity arose.  I work part-time and am still able to drive the kids to school and pick them up, on most days. Kindergarten is ½ days, so Reese attends a day home 3 afternoons a week.  The day home is only a few houses down from the school, so she is picked up at school and then I meet her back at the school at the end of the day when Blake and Em are dismissed.  It’s worked out really well.  Other than work, I am still taxiing children around from school to activities; although it is much easier now that all are in the same school.  I am also coaching Reese’s ringette team and loving being on the ice with her and her team.  I’m so glad my girls are enjoying a sport that I grew up playing!  And I keep busy with the Parent Council at the school.  I am the secretary and really enjoy being involved in the school community. 

Blake turned 8 in May and is nearly as tall as both of his grandma’s!  He is in grade 3 and is doing very well in school.  He’s busy with homework, hockey, swimming lessons and school choir!  His downtime is often spent playing NHL ’15 on the Xbox, reading, creating with Lego, and playing mini-sticks!  He’s doing great in hockey and loves playing defense.  He has a great group of kids on his team!  They are kept quite busy with practices, games, power skating and dryland training.  He loves every minute and we love cheering him on!  This spring Blake played lacrosse for the first time.  He loved it and in the spring of ’16 he wants to play lacrosse and baseball.  I’m not sure if we’ll be able to juggle both team schedules but we will try! 

Emerson turned 6 in February!  Em is in grade 1 and LOVES school.  In fact, she isn’t really keen on being off from school for 2 weeks for Christmas break!  She switched from tap/ballet to Ukrainian dancing this year and I am so impressed with how much she has learned in such a short time!  She also loves Ringette and is in swimming lessons.  Ringette is once a week and twice every 2^nd week.  She has improved so much and really enjoys herself.  In her downtime, Emerson draws.  She draws probably 5-12 pictures every day!  Our fridge is beautifully decorated with her artwork (and some of Blake and Reese’s!)  Emerson has also recently discovered Shopkins and enjoys collecting them and watching Shopkins videos on YouTube!! 

Reese turned 5 in November and is in Kindergarten.  This is her first year of French Immersion and she is slowly picking it up!  As compared to her brother and sister, she is quite shy and not keen on being the teacher’s pet or answering every question.  But she is enjoying school and making new friends and her teacher says she is doing well!  Reese’s ringette team plays once a week.  She is doing great and loves each ice time!  Both she and Emerson do not like much help when getting their ringette equipment on, Cal and I have to sit on our hands J  Reese is also in swimming lessons and she recently wrapped up her very first music class.  She really enjoyed her music class and learned quite a lot.  Every class she would bring home her music folder with homework for the week.  I was actually learning alongside her!  I will definitely enroll her in another session in the New Year.  In her downtime, Reese enjoys playing babies and Barbie’s.  She plays independently very well and we enjoy eavesdropping on her conversations with her toys! She has a vivid imagination J

We all enjoyed our summer this year.  We spent many days and nights with friends and family at various campgrounds throughout Alberta.  The kids loved spending numerous hours behind Grandpa’s new boat!! We visited Kananaskis, the Icefields parkway and Jasper this summer and enjoyed some scenic hikes. The kids did really well this year and were able to take on some more challenging hikes! The kids also had fun at their Pedalheads bike camp in July and all three are now 2 wheels which has been nice for family bike rides!  Blake played in a 3 on 3 hockey league in June, July and August, so even though it was summer, we still spent some time in the rink!  Our nephew Colby also played 3 on 3, so it was really nice to visit with family during the games and Cal and his brother even coached a game or two together!

Sending best wishes to all our friends and family, near and far and thinking of you all during this magical time of year!  Merry Christmas and best wishes for a wonderful 2016!

xoxo

Cal, Tracy, Blake, Emerson and Reese

When time stands still

December has been flying by.  That is until last weekend when it came to screeching halt.  Our world was turned upside down on Saturday night.  My Dad suffered a heart attack.  You never think this type of thing will happen to you or to your people.  It was very scary but the good news is, he was very close to the hospital and was treated extremely quickly.  If we can take any positives from this situation, it is that.  3 stents later, 3 blockages cleared and Dad is home and feeling quite well.  We're so incredibly thankful for our health care system and wonderful dr's and nurses.  Dad received great care and I still can't quite wrap my head around what happened but the bottom line is that he has minimal damage to his heart, is in the best care now and will be back to himself very soon and possibly feeling even better than before!!  We are extra thankful for our health and family this Christmas.  And we love you Dad, so very, very, very much.

Demonstration of Learning

We had a very eventful Demo of Learning on the 2nd!!  First up was Reese's class :)  This was Reese's first demo of learning and unlike her brother and sister, she was very shy!  The main thing she wanted to show me in her classroom was the nativity scene ... apparently this is her most favorite part of school.  I am not surprised, as she also loves our nativity scene at home.  In fact, we have 3 nativity scenes and she is known to hoard all the Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus statues.  lol!  In her Santa letter she also asked for, "a manger and baby Jesus with his Mom and Dad."  I pointed out that we already have 3 of those and she said, "yeah but I want one to play with all year."  Alrighty then, Reese!!  She also showed me some of her school work and the various centres around the classroom.  We tried hard to get her to speak French and did get a little bit out of her!  As I said, she was quite shy and almost whispered most of her answers when I or Mme. Sina asked her a question.  But Mme. Sina says she is doing well and is coming out of her shell a little bit :)  She's made friends and doesn't complain about going to school!   

Next up was Emerson's grade 1 class.  Emerson was super-duper-excited to show us her classroom and the centres they had set up for demo night.  It was really great to hear her reading in French!  She's very excited to start her home reading program!  She's very strong in all her subjects and absorbs every single second of school.  Mme. Khair says Emerson is her go-to person in class.  She always knows the answer and is always raising her hand to answer ;)  Mme. Khair only speaks to the class in French and if someone doesn't understand something, she will ask a student to translate.  That student is usually Em! 

And last but not least, we visited Blake's grade 3 classroom.  Blake was very excited and official.  We had to follow the instructions laid out by his teacher ... step by step, minute by minute!  The pattern of progression from centre to centre could not veer off track ;)  Blake is doing really, has very high marks but as we know, sometimes need to concentrate on his work a little more!  He still sometimes complains of being bored and does not apply himself 100% because "it's too easy."  Oy!  Sounds familiar to someone I met back in 1996 ;)  But when it comes to testing and assignments, he rocks!! 

We're so proud of all 3 kids and their unique personalities and learning styles and are grateful for wonderful teachers!  Demo night is one of my favorites, as we get to see them in their classroom, leading us through their learning centres.  This year was a bit chaotic with juggling the 3 appointment times but we did it ;)

~Tracy

Playing catchup!!

I haven't blogged in awhile ... I've attempted to many times but have been uninspired ;)

So here's a little catch up:

Our weekends are jam-packed, much like our weekdays.  Saturdays seem to be our most low-key day, with a hockey practice for Blake and Cal's Bauer 1st Shift program.  Usually that is all although typically one of the kids also has a birthday party (or two) on Saturdays!  I swear, we might need to take out a loan for all these birthday parties ... lol!  Sundays are super ... super busy and super fun!!!  They always include a hockey game for Blake, Church, a ringette practice for Reese and a ringette practice for Emerson.  If we're lucky we can fit all 4 into our day ;)  We're usually gone for the entire day and Sunday evenings are very relaxed. 

Our new babysitter is working out fantastically and we've been using her a lot.  My Mom covered our butts one night though, as it seems I forgot to book the babysitter.  Thanks Mom!!  Cal and I attended a fundraiser for a charity called Generously Giving Back.  A friend of ours is on the board and this is their big fundraiser for the year.  It was at a restaurant in China town and the meal was 'authentic' ... the first course was jelly fish (which I did not care for!!)!  It was an interesting meal (I can say I really enjoyed 3 of the courses!!) and a fun night out with friends.  Our babysitter is babysitting for us this weekend, as we head to a pub night in support of our friends hockey team :)

Other than work, school, extra curricular activities and volunteering here, there and everywhere, not much else is new around here!!  I don't know if I blogged about Blake having pneumonia but he did and he's now over it.  A cough hung on for a loooong time (or so it felt) but is gone now (knock on wood).  I have to take him in for an asthma test as his pediatrician was questioning if he has asthma or not but the test results were not clear, due to his pneumonia.  Reese has had a cough off and on, more on than off.  I haven't taken them in for their flu shots yet, as they need to be 100% before they can get them.  I feel like Em and Blake could get them now but I'm not sure about Reese.  I had mine at work and Cal still needs his!  I might take Em and Blake in tomorrow.

We're looking forward to Demo of Learning at the kids school on Dec 2nd, first year for us with all 3 kids in the same school!!  It will be a jam-packed few hours ;)  Demo of Learning is always a fun night.  It's great to see their school work and especially awesome to see how proud they are of their classrooms and work :)

Hopefully I'll be motivated/inspired to update the blog a little more regularly ;)

~Tracy 

Happy 5th Birthday, Miss Reese!!

Reese turned the big 5 on the 19th!!  It's hard to believe our youngest is 5 years old already!  Reese had a few days of celebrations ;)  On the 19th we enjoyed cupcakes before hockey practice.  Reese decorated them that morning and they were delicious :)  On the 20th my parents and my sister and her family came over to celebrate with us.  We had Reese's favorite dinner, spaghetti and meatballs!!  It was a fun evening!  Then on the 21st, we all had a great afternoon at her 4 Cats Art Studio Birthday Party.  She had a blast and the kids loved their art projects!!  I'll share some photo's below!

We love you so much, Reesey!  You bring so much joy into our lives, with the world's best hugs and your adorable smile.  You are so kind and have such a huge heart!  You don't like to make people sad or mad and will go out of your way to make someone smile or laugh.  You have a funny, quirky personality and do the oddest things to make us break out in giggles!!!  Your singing and dancing is so darn entertaining, I hope you keep it up over the years ;)  Love ya, Reese!

Ready to open gifts from the family on the morning of her 5th birthday!

Reese and her new Auora doll :)

She's 5!!  And ready to head to school, on her birthday :)

Cupcake time on the 19th!

Blowing out candles on the 20th (and ready to enjoy Grandma's famous carrot cake!!)!!

4 Cats Art Studio birthday party

Blowing out her candles!! (she chose this cupcake cake at Sobey's, right down to the icing colors and piping!)

The crew with their finished artwork!!  Such a fun party!

Happy Birthday to Me!!

The 14th was the big 3-5 for me ... funny how I feel like the year 2000 was just a few years ago and I can't believe that I was 20 then and here I am, 35 in 2015?!  Man, time flies.  I like to joke that sometimes I feel 20 and other times I feel 65 ;)  I think age is just a number but when I REALLY think about it, I panic a little!!  35 isn't old by any means but each year passes faster and faster and the thought of that has my heart beating a little quicker!! 

I had a great birthday night out with my Mom and Sister on the 13th!  We went for dinner and to the Wynonna Judd concert at the River Cree Casino.  Dinner was delicious and the concert was good!  She sang some of the old classics, which I loved!  She is a bit of a comedian, which was funny but I think we may have had the most giggles while looking around at the diverse crowd!!  Thank you so much to my Mom and Sister for treating me to a fun night :)

Saturday was busy with hockey and a birthday party and so we did dinner and cake on Sunday!  The kids would never let us get away without having a proper birthday celebration (aka dinner and cake)!!  My Dad joined us and it was a nice evening!

Here's to my 35th year ... I will do my best to make it a great one!!

Cheers,

Tracy

Reese's 1st Kindergarten field trip!

Reese and I went to Fort Edmonton Park today with her class!  It was her 1st kindergarten field trip and I am so happy I was able to arrange my schedule in order to go on her field trip with her :)  We had fun and she was so happy to have me ;)  The other novelty was that I was able to pick her up from kindergarten, instead of her dayhome!  We were lead on a tour by a guide and enjoyed baking sugar cookies, making a Christmas ornament and partaking in a Christmas Story play!  The kids had so much fun but it was a long day for some of them, there were a few students asleep on the bus on the way home!!

Happy Halloween!!

As I've said in the past, Halloween is one of my most favorite holidays :)  I think this is one of the reasons I love the month of October SO much - our anniversary, Thanksgiving and Halloween!! 

The kids didn't have too much difficulty deciding on their costumes this year and we were some-what organized and purchased them quite awhile before the 31st.  I say somewhat because at 10 pm on the 30th I was looking for black hair dye and green face paint ...

Reese was her favorite princess - Princess Aurora.  Emerson was a pirate - argh ;) And Blake was the Hulk.  This choice surprised as he's never really mentioned the Hulk before! 

I made a mistake this year and did not buy pumpkins when I saw them at the grocery store.  Never again!!  Apparently there was a pumpkin shortage this year.  I called everywhere, looking for pumpkins.  There were none to be found - none in Edmonton, none in the surrounding areas!!  Thankfully my mom is one connected lady and she found us a pumpkin!!  It was HUGE and although it was only 1 pumpkin, the kids were thrilled and thought it was pretty cool to have a pumpkin that big.  We looked up ideas on Pinterest and all settled on one pumpkin design ;)

The 30th was celebration day at school!  Because Reese is in a.m. kindergarten, she got to wear her costume to school and parade around the school in the morning.  I stayed in her class for awhile, before heading to work.  All the kinder kids were adorable and so excited!!

Blake and Emerson had to bring their costumes to school, as their celebrations were in the afternoon.  I sprayed Blake's hair and painted his face before school and sent green face paint with him, for touch-ups!  I was working on the northend that afternoon and was able to meet Reese and her dayhome at the school for the afternoon Halloween parade!!  Cal also met us!  This is one of my favorite parts of Halloween!  So much fun watching the students parade around the gym and ooo'ing and ahhh'ing over all the fabulous costumes!

On the 31st my Mom and Dad stopped by to see the kids all dressed up, then we put our bowl of candy on our step and headed over to my Aunt and Uncle's to see my Grandma, who was handing out candy at their house.  Their neighbourhood was so awesome!  Most homes were decorated and not just 1 or 2 lawn or house ornaments - they went all out!!  We did some trick-or-treating on their block before heading back to our own neighbourhood to meet the Parenteau's.  Blake had an early morning hockey practice that morning and so we didn't stay out as late as we have in the past, which was fine by Cal and I ;)  Less candy and less tired the next day!!

I hope you also had a spooktacular Halloween :)

~Tracy

de-gutting the giant pumpkin!

pumpkin guts!!!

Ree

executing the carving!

finished product :)

snack bags for school!

Reese's Kindergarten class

Some of Blake's class at the Halloween parade - Blake is the Hulk in the back left hand corner :)

don't mess with these two ;)

thanks for stopping by, Grandma and Grandpa!

love them so much!!

visiting with Great Grandma Kelley!

trick-or-treating in Greisbach

BEST house ever!!!  Zombie family, live in person ;) And the decorations were amazing!

ready for bed ... after a few more treats ;)

Blake

Blake is enjoying grade 3 but he has complained it is boring ... which I know it isn't!  I mean, it just can't be.  I could only imagine if he wasn't in French Immersion, the "It's boring" comments would be doubled, I'm sure.  I'm looking forward to his first report card and SLA results.  His teacher says he is doing great and all his marks thus far have been great, sometimes even 110% with the bonus question ;)  This year he continues with his French spelling words and now also has English spelling words.  I love the English spelling words as I can actually say these words, without assistance from some Internet robot!!!  French Immersion is a lot of work, not only for the student but for the parents ;) 

Blake's joined the school choir, which I think is really cool!  I'm glad to see him involved in a non-sport activity!  He has choir every Tuesday after school for 1 hour.  He also has hockey practice every Tuesday, so Tuesday's are busy.  It's home from school/choir, make supper, eat and off to hockey practice.  He's going to have to do his home reading in the truck on the way to practice because it's bedtime as soon as he gets home.  Typically he has one more practice every week, always has a game, sometimes has a dryland practice and sometimes has a team power skating ice time.  So basically, he has a hockey-related activity 3-4 days a week, but 4 most weeks.  He's enjoying his new team and they're all becoming fast friends!  His D partner is taller than him, hard to believe, and they have nick-named themselves 'the twin towers." lol!!  Today after school he was talking to a friend about trick-or-treating together and I over heard him say, "I should invite my twin tower!  He's on my hockey team." and he went on to explain the whole twin tower nickname!!!  So funny!  Blake's also still in swimming lessons and doing great, swimming lengths now and loving every second.  Awhile ago we bought him goggles and they have really helped.  Blake also plays soccer or baseball everyday after school. Talk about an active boy!  He's go-go-go and has so much energy, I wish I could have even an 1/8th of it ;)  As on the go as he is, he is also in love with his NHL '15 XBox game and his NHL YouTube videos!  He knows almost every hockey player and all their stats.  He can talk hours on end about stats.  He loves to read his Dad's Hockey News and Sport Illustrated magazines and helps Cal with hockey drafts, pools and loser pools!  As I've said many times before, he's a mini-Cal at times ;)  Loves his sports and has an amazing memory for stats and trivia!  He also has an interest in history and has been taking books out of the library on the WW's and geography.  Recently my Dad visited with his Uncle who was in WW II and Blake is quite enthralled with that information!  He took a book out of the library about WW II aircraft and asked me, "Do you think this is the kind of plane Grandpa's Uncle flew?"  I told him he'll have to ask Grandpa!!

We're pretty proud of Blake are enjoying the young man he's growing into :)

~Tracy

Em

Emerson is loving grade 1!  She is learning so much.  Blake tests her French and it's so cool to hear all the new sentences and phrases she knows.  She is also proficient in the French alphabet and all the letter sounds.  She flips through her alphabet ring, like it's a breeze ;)  It's very exciting to watch Emerson learn, she soaks up every minute and is a quick learner.  She is an extremely responsible student and takes care of all her school library books, homework, agenda, any forms that come home, etc.  She is the one reminding me that she has to do homework, I have to sign a form, etc!  She always puts her books in her backpack the night before library day, without a reminder from Cal and I!!  She's as studious as a grade 1 student can be :)

Em isn't too upset with my return to work.  She seems kind of proud and in fact I heard her tell her friend Berlyn on the way to dance tonight, "Yeah, she's working again.  She works in classrooms, kinda like a substitute teacher."  lol!!  Apparently my role needs to be better explained, so funny!

Emerson is busy, busy with swimming lessons, Ukrainian Dancing and will soon be starting ringette.  She loves swimming but had a few weeks where she didn't want to go because there were no other girls in her class and the instructor was a boy!  Two weeks ago a girl joined her class and so now she's back to loving swimming lessons!  She is really enjoying Ukrainian Dancing and seems to be learning a lot.  We have a parent watch night in November, which I can't wait for!!  I'm so happy she's enjoying Ukrainian dancing, I loved it as a kid and have always wanted her to try it!!  When we looked into it a few years ago, the time was just too late for her but now it's workable.  Still a bit later than we'd like but at 6 years old she can handle it a lot better than she would have been able to handle it at age 4 ;)  She told me last week that she got a special sticker for keeping her toes very pointed during her 'Taneks' :)  Ringette begins this Sunday!  Em is super excited and really hopes to be on the same team as her friend Charlotte from last year!  There are two Active Start 2 teams, so fingers crossed she gets put on the same team as Charlotte!  Cal is assisting with Active Start 2 and Emerson is super excited to have him coach her :)  Em will be on the ice every Sunday afternoon and every 2nd Thursday evening!  They have committed to 3 tournaments - the Silver Ring in Edmonton, the Sweetheart tournament (very exciting, my sister and I played in this tournament for many years, my mom organized it and my sisters ladies team is playing in it this year!!) and the Beaumont Tim Hortons Jamboree (which was very fun last year!!)!  

We're as proud as ever of our Em :)

Next up, a little update on our boy!

xo

Tracy

Reesey

I think it's time for a Reese update :)  There's been so many changes in Reese's day to day, since the beginning of September!  

Reese feels so-so about the day home.  But she did have a good week at Maria's house, last week!  And by week I mean Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 11:30 to 3!!  She feels like she's there forever but really, she's barely there.  Maria lives less than a block from our school, so on Reese's day home days Maria picks Reese up from K and walks her to her house and at the end of the day, Maria walks Reese to the school where I meet her and then pick up Blake and Emerson!  If I make it to the school early, I pick up Reese from Maria's house.  Reese has had a few teary moments, mostly due to not wanting to leave a water bottle at Maria's house and not liking the lunch Maria has cooked.  Reese is definitely sensitive and it doesn't take much for her to get tears in her eyes ;)  So we decided it is fine for Reese to bring a water bottle to the day home and home vs leaving one at the day home.  She's happy with this!  And now the new rule with lunch is that she has to try it.  Maria told her if she thinks it's gross, she doesn't have to eat it!  This has lead to the discovery of many new foods that Reese will eat!!  I didn't think she was a picky eater but when I had to list the foods she likes, I realized maybe she is a little picky ... I'm just used to it.  So those have been the only 2 day home issues that Reese has had and they seem to be solved!  She's always happy when I pick her up, the tears are usually around lunch time.  Hopefully they're a thing of the past now!  

Reese is LOVING kindergarten and Mme. Sina said she is doing great and is starting to participate more in class.  She is coming home with new French words every week and French songs!  Her printing is getting much better and she is grasping her pencil correctly 100% of the time :)  I brought home our printing module from work for the girls and Reese loves working on hers!  She loves cutting and has been cutting out all sorts of shapes and pictures.  I'm looking forward to volunteering on her first field trip to Fort Edmonton Park and I know she will be so excited that I actually get to pick her up from school on that day!!

Reese is keeping busy with her extra curricular activities!  She still loves swimming lessons and continues to improve!  This past Friday her group went in the deep end and she was swimming underwater, unassisted!  She was very proud!  Her music class is going great.  So far I've been able to take her to all her classes but now my Mom and Cal will be taking turns until mid-December.  Reese comes home from every music class with her duo tang and homework :) The last classes homework was to work on tapping a beat with her foot.  It's pretty cute seeing her attempt that!!  I'm not sure if I'll be able to get her into the same class in the new year (this semester is over in December) but I'm hoping there might be a Thursday class so I can!  Ringette starts next weekend and I'm so excited!  Reese is a bit hesitant, she says her feet hurt ;)  Her skates were too big last year so maybe this year they'll feel better?!  I helping coach again this year.  

It's great to have Thursday's off with Reese but we're doing more housework and errands, than we'd both like.  I think we're going to have to just put that all aside and get it done another time because one of the reasons I was looking forward to Thursday's off was that I'd get a few hours with just Reese!  I think next Thursday that will all have to wait and Reese will pick what we do.  I'm 99% sure she will say, "Play Barbies!!"

Reese is growing up so fast and we are so proud of her :)  I knew all the new transitions in September would be hard on her but she's dealt with them like a champ!!

Next up, Em's update!!

xo

Tracy

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays!  I think it's a combination of the Fall weather, our anniversary, spending time with family and great food :)

On Thanksgiving Monday Reese had music class.  After class we quickly took some photo's in the ravine that is near her class.  It was so gorgeous, with all the fall colors and paths through the woods.  Unfortunately it was raining off and on and I forgot my tripod :(  So we had to move quick and we weren't able to get a good family photo!  However, I did get a few great shots of the kids :)

How adorable ... honestly.

Love this one :)

We always need an outtake ;)

After the photo's, we headed for Thanksgiving dinner with my family.  Lindsay and Jeremy hosted our get together this year.  Jeremy smoked the turkey and I think it was the best turkey I've ever had.  Moist and delicious!  We had a great afternoon - visiting, eating and watching the kids run 'round and 'round and 'round ;)  Thanks for having us, Jeremy and Lindsay!

Mr. Mason and Uncle Cal

Grandpa, Connor, Blake and Great Grandma Kelley

Blake with Uncle Jeremy and Grandma

Em and Connor

Blake and his dessert buffet ... ;)

Reese, waiting for her dessert :)

Emerson and Great Grandma Kelley

Mom and Dad :)

Happy Anniversary!

Our 11th wedding anniversary was on October 9th and we wanted to celebrate with the kids!  I really wanted to try out a new restaurant, or at least one the kids hadn't experienced before.  We settled on Japanese Villiage and it was a great choice!  The kids were thouroughly entertained by our chef and even got a kick out of his cheesey jokes ... such as, "Mushrooms, Japanese Mushrooms ... from Walmart!"  or when he called the bean sprouts "Japanese french fries!"  The kids thought he was hilarious :)  The meal was also a hit!  Everyone really enjoyed their dinner.  It was a fun night out with the kids!!  I'm so proud of my family and love them all to bits.  Happy 11 years, to us!  

Beautiful flowers that look very similar to my bouquet and dinner with my favorite peeps :)

Extracurricular Activities

I've blogged about Blake's hockey, we know for sure that he will have hockey 4 times a week, for the most part! 

All 3 kids also have swimming lessons on Friday nights.

Reese is in a music class on Monday afternoons.  I've made 3 so far and will be able to make the next one.  After that, my Mom and Cal will take turns taking her to music class.  A HUGE thank you to my Mom, for taking that on!!  I'm so glad we could all work together to make this class work for Reese :)  I enrolled her before I had even applied for my job and after I got the job, it was one of my main concerns!  Reese LOVES to sing and I really wanted her to try a class.  So far she's enjoying herself!  She brings home homework after every class and is very proud of the guitar they made last class!

Emerson is Ukrainian dancing this year and I couldn't be happier!!!  I loved when I Ukrainian danced and can't wait to see her perform :)  She's dancing with Veetreez and has had 2 classes so far.  They are 1 hr long, on Tuesday evenings.  Her bff, Berlyn, is also in her class!  She was excited to purchase her new red slippers and although we can't see the class, she tells us she's having a blast!

Emerson and Reese will both be playing ringette but they don't start until mid-October.  Reese's icetimes will be Sundays from 1-2, in Active Start 1 and Emerson's ice times are Sundays from 2:15-3:15 and every second Thursday from 6:30-7:30, in Active Start 2.  Emerson can not wait to start ringette, Reese is a little more aprehensive!  I will be coaching AS1 and may help on the ice with AS2, depending on if I'm alone with the girls at the rink or if Cal or Grandma and Grandpa are there!  My being on the ice with AS2 also depends on Emerson ... at times she says she wants me to help, other times she says no way!  We'll see ;)

Reese would like to take karate or tae kwon do and we might look into lessons in the New Year!  But for now, I feel we have a handle on the extracurricular activities and we'll leave it as if for awhile :)

I love how active our kids are and in turn, it keeps us active as well!!  I'm hoping Blake's games don't interfere too much with Church on Sunday mornings or with Ringette on Sunday afternoons, but I know we're bound to have some interference!!  Fingers crossed we'll still be able to make most games!!

Back to Work!!

I got the job!!!  I got the job :(  I got the job.  omg, I got the job :)

Where to start ... maybe I'll start from the beginning!!

I've said for a few years now, that if I were to return to my previous career, I would want to work in the school system.  I thought it would be great, being that OTA's in the school system work a compressed work schedule during the school months and have the summers off.  Sounded right up my alley!  Add to that, I would be working with kindergarten and grade 1 students (for the most part) and it seemed like the perfect job for me.

I had applied on a posting a few years ago and did not get a call back, which is probably a good thing because at that point in time, I don't think I would have accepted an offer.  Fast forward to July ... a friend of mine works as an OTA in the school system and texted me to tell me there was a part time position posted on the AHS website.  I quickly went to look at the posting and applied that night.  I knew that I was possibly ready to return to work because I was slightly excited and nervous, waiting for a call back!  Then, I did get a call.  And then I was really nervous because I had this feeling that I was going to get the job.  So I was a ball of excitement and nervousness, all rolled in to one.  With a little bit of doubt, thrown in there!!  I couldn't make an in person interview so they offered me a phone interview (I've already blogged about that!).  A few days later I was offered the job.  I was super excited but a little bit unsure.  How could I return to work after so much time off?  How would this affect my family?  Would the kids need to go to a day home?  The position is a .48 FTE, which equals 23.25 hours/week for the months of September to June.  I threw around some possible scenario's and decided I would accept the offer.  Then I freaked out a little bit and decided there's no way I could make it work.  So I called the manager and said (my exact words), "I am sorry, I really want to make this work but I don't think I can accept the position."  To which she asked me why it wouldn't work and I listed off these reasons: 1) my youngest is in kindergarten and doesn't start until Sept 14 (the start date for the position was Sept 1) 2) I would miss too many field trips/special events/PD days (because I'd be working in the public system and our kids are in the Catholic system). I think I again said, "I'm sorry."  Lisa, the manager, then told me not to worry.  If I'd like the position, I could choose a better start date and that even if my vacation hours hadn't accrued enough to take a day off, I could take an unpaid day if I wanted.  I told her I'd call her back!  So I talked to Cal about it (some more, I'd already talked his ear off about it!!) and decided I WOULD take it!!  I called Lisa back and confirmed (again) that she was sure there would be no problem with me taking unpaid days!  To me, one of the most important parts of being a stay at home mom is being able to drop off and pick up my kids from school and also being able to attend field trips and special events (here and there, not every one!)!  So we worked out my hours and set a start date!

I am an Occupational Therapy Assistant, working with an Inclusive Learning team for the Edmonton Public School Board.  Students and classes are referred to an Occupational Therapist, who then assesses the class/students and refers them on to me for treatment.  Much of the treatment involves printing and fine motor skills.  I'll be working in schools across the city but my office is at ParkAllen school, which is by the University.  Although I have my laptop and phone and most likely will not be at the office every day.  I can start and end my day where ever is convenient (ie, a school I am working at or an Inclusive Learning office that is near to where I am).  My hours are Mondays, 8 to 4:30, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday's, 9 to 2, off on Thursdays.  Cal does pick ups and drop offs on Mondays and I get to do all the other days, plus have all day off on Thursday with Reese (she doesn't have school on Thursdays) and 1/2 the day with all 3 kids (Blake and Emerson get out at 11:46 am on Thursdays)!

We're only into week 2 but so far, so good!!  I'm enjoying it thus far, although it's been too many days of IT issues!!!!  Setting up my laptop and phone has been a pain in the you know what ;)  I forgot about that part of a new position.  I'll finally be in a school tomorrow and I can't wait to being working with a great group of grade 1 students!  We'll being doing a printing module tomorrow.  When we do modules, it is one hour a week, for 5 weeks.  The idea is that once a teacher has participated in 1 module, they will be able to continue to carry it out throughout the school year and in future years.  The entire class participates in our modules.  We also work one on one with specific students.

My heading back to work is probably the biggest change for Reese.  Blake and Emerson won't really notice a difference because they're in school while I'm working!  Reese will be at a day home on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday.  Maria picks her up at Kindergarten at 11:20, walks her home for lunch and I pick Reese up at 2:30, before going to the school to pick up Blake and Em at 2:56.  There was some day home shuffling before I began work, originally Reese was taking the bus to another day home but that didn't work out and this is actually much better!  Maria's daughter is in Blake's class so I've known her for a few years now.  Her house is not even a block from the school, which is very convenient.  Reese is glad she doesn't have to take the bus!  If I'm delayed at all, Maria will walk Reese to the school and I will meet them there (Maria goes to the school anyways, to pick up her 2 girls!).

It's been an absolutely amazing 6 years at home full-time with my 3 beautiful kiddo's, I wouldn't trade a second of it.  But I am really ready to get back into a career and have something for myself.  I'm glad I was able to find a position that works out so well for our family and still allows me to spend before and after school and their early dismissal days with them :)  Oh, and summers!!  And Spring Break and Christmas Break!  Thank you to Cal for making this easy for me, for rearranging his Mondays and for letting me work out the logistics and ultimately, leaving the decision to return to work up to me! 

And last but not least, I'm excited to get a paycheck ;)  lol!